Ensemble ACJW @ Skidmore’s new Zankel Music Center 2/5/10

SARATOGA SPRINGS – A couple of decades of dreaming and $32.5 million in funds finally came together last month when the music department of Skidmore College took up residence in the new Zankel Music Center. Friday night the inaugural performance in its Helen Filene Ladd Concert Hall was given by the Ensemble ACJW. The young professionals who make up the ACJW spend most of the year at Carnegie Hall, where one of the auditoriums is named for the late Arthur Zankel, who underwrote both facilities.

In a brief speech Skidmore president Philip A. Glotzbach called the new building a crossroads where the community will be entertained, challenged, informed and inspired. There seems to be room for all that and more on the huge, slightly raked stage which has no curtains but large picture windows as a backdrop.

While a more formal dedication is planned for October, the music on this concert often had a reverent, even mystical feeling. The opener, Prokofiev’s Quintet in G Minor Op. 39 began with a duet of clarinet and oboe that seemed to be a slithering incantation. Evan Premo’s bowed bass added to the haunting mix, though the piece grew rather jaunty as it progressed.

More Russian flavor came after intermission with Shostakovich’s Piano Trio No. 2 in E Minor, Op. 67. The Allegro was appropriately wry but marred by wayward pitch in the strings and some smudged notes in the fast piano runs.

In between was David Bruce’s “Gumboots,” a 2008 piece for clarinet and string quartet. Sarah Beaty was its star, achieving in the opening a high and sweet tone from the bass clarinet. Cast in two imbalanced movements, “Gumboots” begins with a prayerful but overlong essay, followed by five short, cheerful but highly similar dances.

Listening from a seat in the third row of the balcony, moments in every piece showed the hall to have extraordinary acoustics. There was always a robust presence to the players’ sound and a fast mezzo forte movement of the Prokofiev ended with a two or three second decay of sound. The string harmonics that opened the Shostakovich were hushed yet transparent and clear.

Front of house operations including ticketing, programs and general traffic flow were chaotic but will surely be ironed out over time. Hopefully the stage manager will stop throwing the audience into darkness during performances. That’s appropriate for theaters, but not classical concert halls. But that’s what the Zankel is and it has the elements to be a fine one.

Joseph Dalton is a local freelance writer who contributes regularly to the Times Union.

MUSIC REVIEW

Ensemble ACJW

When: 8 p.m. Friday
Where: Zankel Music Center, Skidmore College, Saratoga Springs
Duration: Two hours 10 minutes with one intermission
The crowd: a full house of 600 students, faculty and community members.

3 Responses

What a concert this was! I could not think of a better way to kick off this wonderful hall than to have these great musicians perform, and what cool repertoire.

While I agree with some of this review, critics are often times reminders that media is far seperate from classical performers. As an example, I do not recall any classical performance where the audience sits with the lights on. What a weird thing to criticize.

Also, The shostakovich was tremendous. One of the most difficult pieces to perform live. If one is to critic the intonation of the strings, then I would like to comment on the lack of editing in this article. ” Still, the Zankel Center has the elements to become be a fine one.”

“Front of house operations including ticketing, programs and general traffic flow were chaotic but will surely be ironed out over time.”

Let’s hope so. I saw many friends being turned away because the ticketing procedures were confusing and unclear. It didn’t help, too, that many seats were reserved for VIPs. Skidmore’s Office of Special Programs usually runs a better operation than this. What was supposed to be a celebration for the community led to aggravation and exclusion due to misinformation.

From what I understand Skidmore’s Special Programs was NOT responsible for the box office operations. We’ve been to almost all of the summer jazz concerts in the past 10 years and standing room only crowds are handled with ease. All in all, a wonderful evening for the Zankel’s soft opening — it sounds like there is a lot to look forward to — including the Grand Opening in the fall. Thanks again Skidmore for opening your doors.